What is CSP means practically for Microsoft partners?

The Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider program will help you manage the entire Microsoft cloud customer lifecycle, in this you can utilize dedicated in-product tools to directly provision, manage and support your customer subscriptions. You can also package this with your own tools, products and services and combine them into one monthly or annual customer bill.

Benefits for the partners?

You will be the first point of contact for all of your Customer’s needs You will control the billing cycle which will be flexible (monthly or annually) You can create your own financing options for the customers You will get in-products tools to directly provision, manage and support Distributors will provide 24x7 technical support to your customers.

Which products can Partners sell in this program?

Partners can sell all major commercial suites and standalone products for Office 365, Windows Intune, and EMS. AZURE and Dynamic CRM

Which Customer segments can partners sell?

Partners can sell to any commercial Customer. Enterprise Agreements may offer additional discounts, but this will vary based on your value added services offering. Although pricing pressure may be felt at 1,000 seats, there is no seat cap.

How does this benefit Customers?

Customers can more easily purchase Partner tools, products and/or services with their subscription in one predictable monthly bill. Beyond the inherent benefits of the Cloud, Customers will have more frequent Partner interactions which can serve to deepen the relationship

What’s the difference between 1-Tier and 2-Tier CSPs?

Similar to our traditional channel model, we will have 1-Tier Cloud Solution Providers who sell directly to Customers at scale, and 2-Tier Cloud Distribution Partners who recruit, enable and grow a cloud reseller channel at scale. We expect the vast majority of our Partner channel to be serviced within the 2-Tier model.

How does this impact the way the channel sells today?

The Cloud and Product value of Office 365, Windows Intune and EMS are exactly the same. This is simply one of the business models Partners can consider when selling Microsoft cloud subscriptions. If you have the resources to provide complete Customer lifecycle management and want to own the Customer billing and support relationship, this model may be a great fit for your business.

Are there Partner investments required?

New investments will vary based on your current practice. Areas to consider:

• Local tax implications of selling a subscription product versus a service • Adjustments to your sales incentive programs to reflect monthly revenue

recognition • Management of credit risk and collections • Ability to transact billing on a monthly and/or annual basis • 24/7 end Customer Billing and Technical Support in local language

How do I participate in the Microsoft Cloud Solution Provider Program?

CSP is an invitation-only program. Work with your local Microsoft contact to understand the CSP business and technical capability requirements and submit a nomination. Upon invitation, you will be asked to sign a contract and complete the CSP onboarding process.

What is the Partner revenue opportunity?

Partners receive access to a wholesale price list and can recognize upfront margin at the initial sale and with every subsequent renewal. Partners also have the opportunity to attach their initial deployment and migration services as well as ongoing maintenance and support to every subscription. And because Partners have an ongoing Customer relationship with touch points any time a Customer has questions or wants to make a change in the subscription there are greater opportunities to drive adoption services, customization and upsell. Partners can also consider financing their initial deployment and migration services to spread upfront costs in exchange for a long term commitment for ongoing managed services.

When will Microsoft communicate directly with a Partner’s Customers?

As a general principle the expectation is that Partners manage the communications with their Customers. Since you own the Customer billing relationship, Microsoft will not send communications directly to Customers related to their subscriptions. Microsoft may communicate directly with Customers as it relates to operation of the service, such as important information on service incidents. Note that many Customers have existing commercial relationships with Microsoft, and Microsoft will continue to communicate directly with these Customers related to these other products and services.

What prevents Microsoft from taking Customers direct?

This program was designed to place Partners at the center of the Customer relationship. You own the billing relationship and are established as the first point of contact for your Customers. Microsoft will not communicate directly with your Customers about the services they purchase through you.

What happens if Customers don’t pay Partners?

Partners assume the Customer credit risk and are therefore responsible for payment to Microsoft. Partners have the ability to disable access to the subscription for non-payment in the Partner Admin Center. Partners should establish a clear collections policy with Customers that details your collections process and when access to the subscription will be impacted.

Please explain how Customers can move between programs, eg, Customers under an EA, Open and Advisor agreement: can they also purchase subscriptions from me as their Cloud Solution Provider? How do Partners move them to into this program?

Initially Customers with existing subscriptions purchased through other programs (such as EA, Open or direct from Microsoft) will not be able to transition subscriptions or have other license types coexist on the same tenant. We plan to enable this ability in the first half of 2015.

Will my Account person get credit for CSP revenue?

Yes. Microsoft Account teams will receive CSP revenue credit the same way as other Cloud licensing models.

What happens if this doesn’t work for my business? Can I move my Customers over to another program?

Customers make a 12 month commitment that must be fulfilled. At the end of that period you can sell your Customers an EA, Open or Advisor model at your discretion

Partner Tools

What kind of Customer management and administration tools are available to Partners in this program?

As a program Partner you have access to several Customer administration and management tools found within the Office 365 Partner admin center. This includes tools to create new Customer tenants, order new subscriptions for Customers, change the number of seats on a subscription, view Customer service health, view Customer service incidents, and perform administration tasks on behalf of Customers.

How are the Partner tools different from the existing Partner Admin Center?

In addition to a core set of tools available to all Partners within their Office 365 Partner admin center, Cloud Solution Providers have access to additional tools, including the ability to create new Customer tenants, order subscriptions and manage subscriptions on behalf of their Customers. All Partners, whether part of the program or not, have access to a common set of tools within the Partner admin center, including the ability to perform delegated administration, view service health and view service incidents for the Customers they manage.

Channel Incentives

What are the channel incentives?

Microsoft Cloud Solution Providers earn up-front margin through a wholesale price list. There are no programmatic channel incentives for the 1-Tier CSP model.

What is the difference in channel incentive programs with Open, EA and Advisor?

Microsoft Cloud Solution Providers earn upfront margin through a wholesale price list. The Open, EA and Advisor programs have channel incentive programs based on sales and/or performance.

Offers and Pricing

Which Microsoft products are offered?

Office 365 and Windows Intune are available for sale.

Are all of the Office 365 SKUs offered?

All commercial major suites and standalone products will be available.

Are there non-profit SKUs? No, not at this time.

Are there government or Academic products? No, not at this time.

If I add seats to a Customers’ existing tenant, do they pay the prevailing price? If seats are added to an existing subscription, Partners will pay the same price during the term of that subscription, i.e. the price they quoted at the time the subscription was started. New subscriptions will be established at the prevailing price.

How often does Microsoft change pricing to Partners?

We will provide 30 days’ notice to any price change through the publication of our Partner Price List.